S.Y.P.H.

***With their unpredictable live performances and songs such as "Zurück zum Beton" and "Industriemädchen," S.Y.P.H. caused a ruckus at the end of the '70s—as one of the bands that began to write lyrics in German around Düsseldorf's Ratinger Hof (German '70s punk club equivalent to CBGB's, where D.A.F. originated). Right from the start, the band broke with genre-conformist expectations and borrowed from rock, punk and kraut just as much as from Dadaism and the reality of everyday life. Now, a reissue series sheds light on S.Y.P.H.'s first creative phase from 1977 to 1982. S.Y.P.H. formed in 1977 in Solingen and began playing concerts in nearby Düsseldorf. Initially clearly based on punk, the band's sound quickly developed and became increasingly difficult to categorize. In the intensive years that followed, S.Y.P.H.'s productions often featured guests from the Düsseldorf scene around Ratinger Hof or CAN's Holger Czukay. This is a collection of the band's early singles: four tracks—including "Industriemädchen" and "Europa"—were originally released in 1979 on the EP Viel Feind, viel Ehr . Thirteen further tracks—including "Falsche Freunde" and "Knudelblues II"—were released in 1982 as Der Bauer im Parkdeck. Three further songs are unreleased.